Hermione's Confession
by AmazingArekusa
Summary: Hermione Granger has trouble dealing with a secret crush that has been on her mind since forever


House: Slytherin

Category: Themed

Prompt: "H-how long have you been standing there?" (Speech)

Word Count: 2080

Hermione Granger studied the pale blonde hair in front of her. Her eyes were fixated on the boy's movements, even though getting the slightest bit distracted from the lecturing professor disgusted her. She also hadn't been shooting her arm up to all of the questions that were asked. That alone told Hermione how much she hadn't been herself lately. Something which she blamed on a certain Draco Malfoy...

"Hey!" A voice pulled her out of her thoughts. With a start, she looked up and noticed one of her best friends, Harry Potter, standing in front of her, a scowl on his face.

Hermione blinked, unaware of what had happened. Then she glanced about her surroundings, and realized the chairs and desks were empty. "Oh, sorry. I was just thinking about the homework I have," she lied. She slowly got up and acted as though everything was just fine. Normal. She, however, knew something was very wrong.

Harry must have noticed her peculiar actions, though. "Are you okay?" he asked, clearly not believing her homework excuse. "You haven't been yourself lately, Hermione."

Dumbfounded, Hermione tried her best to reassure him. "Of course. It's just the stress, I suppose… I mean, if you had as many classes as I do, I'm sure you'd be the same way," she joked. "Anyway, I have to go, Harry. I'd like to get as much homework done as I can."

Harry's wary expression disappeared and was replaced with one of relief. "That's how I know you're back to normal," he chuckled. "That's cool, Hermione. I'll catch you later." He turned to the right and walked towards the Quidditch pitch for the afternoon practice.

"And that's how I know that I'm a great actress," Hermione murmured to herself.

Once out of class, she headed up the stairs and to the Gryffindor common room. As always, the common room was crowded and loud as ever, especially for a Friday night. Shoving past the many gossiping students, Hermione made her way to her dorm. All she wanted was a place to herself and some peace and quiet. She needed to think. A lot. Her emotions were driving her nuts. She knew herself, and it was like she had switched bodies with Ron. At the moment, she only had the emotional range of a teaspoon, which would explain everything if she really had switched bodies.

Hermione threw herself onto her bed. Millions of thoughts rushed through her head, some reasonable and some totally out of context. She decided that all she needed was just a good night's rest. She hoped that that would clear her brain for a while, at least.

XXX

"Merlin's beard!" Hermione exclaimed. Her body was sweaty, as well as her bed sheets. She touched her face to check if this was reality, or a fragmented part of her dreams. Unfortunately, it wasn't. Sweat dotted her forehead, and her palms easily slid from all the moisture. She couldn't stop panting from the panic, her nightmare was still fresh in her memory. It was possibly one of the worst nightmares she had ever gotten.

However, the one thing that seemed to be burnt into her mind was a blonde boy's mischievous smirk. She knew that face all too well; it belonged to Draco Malfoy, possibly the most awful person she knew.

The dream was about her and Draco. She had foolishly developed a silly crush on him. In the dream, she had also stupidly decided to confess her love for him, which definitely had not ended well. She had seemed so weak… but then Draco had actually said that he also liked her too, which had made it even worse. What was she to do the feeling were actually mutual? "I'm so glad that was just a dream..." she sighed in relief. After a few minutes, she finally gave up and got dressed.

After getting ready, Hermione headed for the Great Hall, her stomach growling like never before. As soon as she arrived, the first person her eyes spotted was Draco. His dark grey eyes had caught her gaze at the same time, making her blink a few times in embarrassment. Dropping her head, Hermione shuffled towards her table, where Harry and Ron were sitting. Deciding to just forget the matter, Hermione acted as though she just had the best sleep she's gotten in days. Something feigning sweet blissfulness was the best way to go.

In the hallways, Hermione had always miraculously managed to lock eyes with Draco. It was awkward at first, but she got used to it. It would sometimes give her a flutter in her stomach. This went on for days. Hermione had begun to notice that there was always a little sparkle of emotion in his eyes whenever she looked. Some days they looked mischievous, others sad, some happy, and other days angry. Sometimes Hermione thought that his eyes lit up when he saw her.

However, this was taking a huge toll on her. Her grades, her appearance, her attitude, everything. She wasn't herself, and even she couldn't figure out why.

That night, Hermione laid in bed, the blankets pulled over her head, a weak attempt at trying to shut out the outside world. She had been playing with her hair, deep in thought, when something struck her. She had a crush on Draco Malfoy. Her eyes widened and she tightly shut her eyes. She rubbed her temple, as if she could try to snap herself out of it. She herself couldn't even believe it.

"I like Draco Malfoy," she silently whispered, as if she was trying to convince herself it wasn't true. "I like Draco Malfoy." This time she laughed. It seemed like the most ridiculous thing ever. "I like Draco Malfoy!"

She stared up at the ceiling, mulling over the thought that all these months hadn't meant she was dying, or going crazy. She had only been oblivious about her feelings toward the blonde-haired tormenter.

"Are you serious?" a girl's voice asked behind the curtain, almost mocking her.

Hermione threw back the blankets to find Lavender standing there, a scowl on her face. In the moonlight, she almost looked angelic, but Hermione knew from the years of knowing her that she was anything but. She had heard _everything._ A strange feeling rose up inside of her, telling her that this couldn't be good.

She gasped, her heart stopping her stomach dropping. Her eyes widened at Lavender when the realization set in, her fear growing since she knew that the girl before her was perfectly capable of telling the entire world _just_ how Hermione Granger felt about Draco Malfoy.

"L-lavender…. What in Merlin's name are you doing here?" Hermione said, still shocked and barely being able to face the other girl.

Lavender put on an innocent look, knowing full well that she couldn't convince Hermione of her intentions otherwise. But Hermione saw right through it. She'd seen that look too many times to believe it was truly angelic. "What are you talking about, Hermione? I live here," she said in the nicest tone Hermione had heard her use.

"You can't repeat anything I just said. Do. Not. Repeat. It," Hermione said firmly.

"Aww, but that's boring. Come on, just a little tiny bit. Just the bit where you said that you had a crush on Draco?" Lavender teased.

"Don't test me," she warned, her voice hard.

"Oh, come on, Hermione! Honestly, you're no fun. I just can't see how _anyone_ would like you. I mean, just look at you," Lavender spat. "You're a bushy-haired, buck-toothed, unbearable know-it-all."

"What do you have against me?" Hermione snapped, looking at the girl with a new perspective, her anger bubbling up inside her, tempting her. She may be a Gryffindor… but she knew many things. Including the contents of a few of the Restricted Section's darker books.

Lavender merely laughed, as if this was just a joke to her. "Nothing. I just don't like you, is all." She said those words of casual dismissal as if they were just something else to toss around, like the hearts of her beaus.

"I don't want to hurt you, Lavender. I really wished we could've been friends. It doesn't have to be like this," Hermione said, trying to persuade her.

Lavender tilted her head in consideration. Her eyes lit up with the unmistakable wave of anger. Maybe, if things had been different, they could've been friends. But, this is different. This was probably one of the most important secrets Hermione has ever had. She was not going to let Lavender get away with something this precious.

"Fine. Hate me. Do whatever you want. Just do not tell _anyone_. You have no

right telling everyone with ears all of _my_ business!" Hermione spat. She didn't

know what else she could say to help Lavender see sense in this.

"Oh, Hermione. You don't have any idea what I'm capable of," she said, disappearing into the dark. With the faintest farewells, the curtain to her four-poster bed righted itself, and she was left in the dark once again.

Breathing in deeply, Hermione held back the tears that threatened to fall from her eyes. It was the only thing she could control, knowing that tomorrow may bring something that she couldn't fight.

XXX

Hermione was headed to the Great Hall, her mind full of worries and doubts. She still couldn't shake off what had happened the night before. As soon as she stepped inside, however, the whole room turned to her. She could feel their stares burning into her. Hermione quickly looked away, trying to act natural, as if this was something she could care less about. She swiftly took her seat with Harry and Ron. They, too, were staring at her like she was mad.

After finally getting irritated of being stared at like some kind of dessert, Hermione snapped. "What are you two gawking at?"

The two boys looked at each other, surprised at her sudden outburst. After a few moments of tense silence, Ron finally spoke. By that time, the other students had resumed their eating, but the two boys were still far quieter than usual, pushing their food around their plates in lieu of shovelling as much breakfast as they could into their mouths.

"So, do you actually like that bone-head?" Ron asked carefully, afraid of what Hermione respond with. Hermione just looked straight at him, and smiled kindly. She went back to eating as if the question was never asked.

"Hermione?" Harry asked. Hermione put her fork down, making a loud bang.

"Can I eat my breakfast in peace?! Do you guys always need to have a say in what I like? This shouldn't bother any of you since it doesn't even apply to you!" Hermione stormed off out of the Hall, tears burning in her eyes. When she was certain no one was following her, she threw herself onto a bench, trying to wipe her eyes with the sleeve of her robe. "Why can't I like him? Why is it so bad?" she asked herself. "I mean what is there not to like? There's his hair that looks so well looked after. There's his eyes. I could stare into them all day. There's his determination. He would do anything for what he wants. There's so much about him that I just admire. Why is it so bad for me to like him?" Hermione asked, almost begging at that moment.

"It's not bad," a voice said. Hermione looked next to her and saw Draco Malfoy was standing next to her. "I don't think it's bad."

"H-how long have you been standing there?" Hermione asked, panic firing in her system.

"Enough time to know that you actually meant that," he answered.

"You shouldn't have heard any of that. It wasn't for you."

"Really? I'd like to think that even I have a right to know what you think of me, you know, considering that it is about me," Draco joked. He didn't act how everyone

described him to be.

"I'm sorry. I know you probably don't even care or even like me. I was foolish to even think that," Hermione said.

"No. You're the brightest witch I've ever met, I wouldn't doubt anything. This wouldn't change about how I feel about you." Draco smiled, he held out his hand to Hermione. Hermione stared at it, feeling overwhelmed. She took his hand, and together they walked back into the Great Hall.


End file.
